Mehmed Ali’s army drew equally from Ottoman as from French military models.

Evidence

It is therefore clear that the Pasha was informed about Napoleon’s army and that he was influenced by it when he came to organize his own army. However, Mehmed Ali’s fascination with western models of reform, and French ones in particular, seems to be overstated. As obvious as it is that he was borrowing from the French, it is clear that he was equally influenced by the Ottomans who themselves had been borrowing from the French and adopting their models to suit their own needs. — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 425

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s interest in the Ottoman-French interplay in Egypt’s army founding; also echoes the reader’s standing theme of Egypt as a meeting point of Ottoman and European military systems.